Final Project

Harvey Dock

Rutgers Amateur Boxing Program

The United States Intercollegiate Boxing Association was formed in 2012 and looks to bridge the gap between sport and academia is an interchangeable force that provide the necessary intangible traits that equate to success.  According to its website, “USIBA’s mission is to be the preeminent competitive intercollegiate amateur boxing league in the United States.”  Amateur boxing has a rich tradition in this country, as evidenced by several successful U.S. Olympic teams, but the amateur tradition also has a long, storied collegiate past, which USIBA is looking to bring back and make a focal point of higher education, through discipline, hard work, and commitment.  New Jersey boasts a very successful ladies boxing team, at the West Point military academy, spearheaded by New Jersey Amateur Boxing secretary Jacklyn Atkins.  Mrs. Atkins trains the very successful team and collaborates with amateur boxing teams throughout the state of New Jersey to ensure that the teams are in compliance with the newest rules and safety measures in the state.

Amateur Boxing Match - Gleason's Gym, Brooklyn, New York

I have had a lot of dialogue with Mrs. Atkins about the logistics of forming a team at Rutgers.  We have had fruitful discussions that stem from a passion that we both share for the sport.  I got my start many years ago and was inducted into the New Jersey Boxing Hall of Fame 20 years ago.  I have maintained a strong passion for the sport that has elevated my amateur success to becoming one of the sports top professional referees.  The road that the amateur program has allotted me has been extremely beneficial in every aspect of my existence.

I have spoken to other prominent members in the professional boxing community about the importance of the amateur boxing program and its benefits to young men and women, and the response has been overwhelmingly positive.  The current New Jersey State Athletic Commissioner Larry Hazzard is a member of the New Jersey amateur boxing circuit, having won several Golden Gloves Championships in the 1960’s, while using the discipline of the sport as a catalysts to a strong academic career that has seen him help various other students educationally in his role as a high school principle. 

Amateur Golden Gloves Competition in New York

While we have all benefitted from the success of our amateur involvement in the sport, we look to bring the same sort of academic fervor through the amateur boxing program that will enable us to see other generations of kids succeed through this wonderful sport.  I have spoken to several members of the boxing fraternity (both professional and amateur) and everyone is excited of the prospects of bringing another successful amateur boxing program to another higher institution in New Jersey.

Works cited:

Larry Hazzard, New Jersey State Athletic Commissioner

Melvina Lathan, New York State Athletic Chairwoman

Henry Hascup, New Jersey Amateur Boxing President/historian

Jacklyn Atkins, New Jersey Amateur Boxing Treasurer/West Point Coach Girls Boxing Team